On The Fly: Floyd Little Finally Gets Into Hall

August 07, 2010|By TOM YANTZ, tyantz@courant.com

Led by Emmitt Smith and Jerry Rice, the seven players who were inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame can be called the greatest enshrinement class ever. Adding to its luster was New Haven's Floyd Little. The running back, nicknamed "The Franchise" with the Denver Broncos, assumed his rightful place among the greats Saturday night in Canton, Ohio.

*** LeBron James thanked his fans in Cleveland for the "last seven years and the years that continue to go in the future." He said this while speaking at his "King for Kids" charity bikeathon, a worthy charitable endeavor in his hometown of Akron. But to thank the fans in Cleveland — for whatever James was thanking them for — has one basic problem for the player who bolted to the Miami Heat: He has no fans in Cleveland.

*** After shooting his worst round ever (75) at the Bridgestone Invitational, Tiger Woods was in 78th place in the field of 80. If Phil Mickelson (71), who is tied for 10th, four shots out of first, finishes in the top four today, he'll be No.1 in the world rankings. Woods has been No.1 for the past five years. Maybe he should wear white today instead of his traditional red and black.

*** In a matchup of big-game pitchers, the Yankees' CC Sabathia bested the Red Sox's John Lackey, 5-2. Lackey has been more an undersized starter recently with a 1-4 record, two no-decisions and a 4.93 ERA in his last seven outings. … Defensive lineman Albert Haynesworth finally passed his conditioning test at Redskins camp. What a joke. Poor Albert didn't like the team switching to a 3-4 defense under new coach Mike Shanahan and demanded a trade. There was no trade, so Albert skipped the team's offseason conditioning program. As a result, Shanahan told him he had to pass the conditioning test to practice. And on the 10th day, Albert finally passed. Joy to the world.

*** Cuba defeated the U.S. 4-3 on a three-run, walk-off homer by Alfredo Despaigne in the bottom of the 10th inning in the FISU World University Championships gold medal game. Left fielder George Springer of UConn had one RBI. He finished the competition with a .292 batting average and a team-high 18 RBI. UConn coach Jim Penders and Connecticut fans should be proud.